Polis introduces oil, gas drilling bill

U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, D-Boulder, has introduced a bill that he says would close a loophole that now exempts oil and gas drilling from certain provisions of the federal Clean Air Act.

Polis' proposed "BREATHE Act" -- the "Bringing Reductions to Energy's Airborne Toxic Health Effect Act" -- would ensure that wells drilled with the hydraulic fracturing process, an injection of sand, water and chemicals, aren't exempt from federal oversight, according to a Thursday news release from the Colorado congressman's office.

Polis' bill would add hydrogen sulfide to the Clean Air Act's list of hazardous air pollutants.

Polis

Polis is a co-sponsor of a related bill, a measure introduced Thursday by U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright, a Pennsylvania Democrat, to reverse a Clean Water Act exemption that Polis' staff said oil now exempts oil and gas companies from having to comply with federal permit requirements for storm water runoff.

Cartwright's bill, called the Focused Reduction of Effluence and Stormwater Runoff (FRESHER) Act, would mandate a study of the effects of oil and gas operations on surface water.